The subject matter of this application relates generally to the design and control of engineering systems. Across a broad range of industries, modern engineering systems are characterized by marked increases in complexity and simultaneous decreases in component tolerances. As a result, engineering control systems are subject to greater operational demands, which require more sophisticated and detailed modeling techniques.
Fluid-based engineering systems provide a range of relevant examples. These include gas turbine engines for aviation and power generation, HVAC&R (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and refrigeration), fuel cells, and other, more generalized fluid processing systems for hydrocarbon extraction, materials processing, and manufacture. These systems contain any or all of the following components: turbo-machinery, fuel cell stacks, electric motors, pipes, ducts, valves, mixers, nozzles, heat exchangers, gears, chemical apparatuses and other devices for generating or modifying a fluid flow.
Each of these applications places different operational demands on the engineering control system. In gas turbine engines, for example, the relevant cycle is typically a Brayton turbine or first Ericsson cycle, and the basic thermodynamic parameters (or process variables) are the pressure, temperature and flow rate of the working fluid at the inlet, compressor, combustor, turbine, and exhaust. The parameters are related to the overall thrust, rotational energy, or other measure of power output. In order to precisely control this output while maintaining safe, reliable and efficient engine operation, the engineering control system should be fast, accurate and robust, and provide real-time control capability across a range of performance levels. While the relevant process variables vary depending on the system type and configuration, the need for precise, efficient and reliable engineering control remains the same, as do the economic constraints on overall cost and operational/maintenance requirements.